608 MANUAL OF POISONOUS PLANTS 



preparing conserves and have an acid flavor which is very palatable ; the peri- 

 carp, however, contains an irritant substance cardol C 21 H 30 O 2 , which is 

 black, acrid and vesicating, and is used to protect books and furniture from 

 insects ; cashew oil, equal to the finest almond oil and superior to olive oil, 

 is also a product of the plant. The juice of the shell of the nut produces poison- 

 ing similar to that of poison ivy. The kernels of the cashew may be eaten 

 raw or roasted like chestnuts, but the fumes coming from the roasting nuts 

 are very caustic. The pistachia nut (Pistacia vera) produces a fruit about 

 the size of a plum, which contains a seed much prized for eating. The mango 

 (Mangifera indica) a native of India, is now cultivated in most warm countries 

 for its fine edible fruit. The bark of many species, like the smooth sumac 

 (Rhus glabra) of the North, and the European R. Coriaria, contains a valu- 

 able tanning material. The smoke tree (Rims Cotimts) and the stag horn sumach 

 (Rhus typhina) are frequently cultivated for ornamental purposes. The fruits 

 of Spondias dulcis. S. purpurea and S. lutea are edible, the last of these is 

 called the hog plum, being so named because the hogs are fond of it. The 

 juice of another member of the family (Comocladia') causes an eruption similar 

 to that from poison ivy. 



Tannic and pyrogallic acids are derived from the Chinese Indian Rhus semi- 

 alata. Chios turpentine (Pistacia Terebinthus} well known to the ancients, 

 produces red galls that are used for tanning morocco leather. The mastic 

 (Pistacia Lentiscus} native to the Mediterranean region, was formerly used 

 for making varnishes. 



The Querbrachia Lorentsii and Q. Balansae of Argentine and Paraguay 

 produce a very hard red wood which contains a great deal of tannin and gallic 

 acid. The fruit of Dracontomelon inangifcrum of the Sunda islands is used 

 much like lemons. The ink tree of India (Semecarpus Anacardium and Holi- 

 garna fcrmginea) contain cardol. 



The pepper tree (Schinus Molle) cultivated in California, is a native of 

 Peru. The saw-dust of sneezewood (Ptacroxylon utile') produces sneezing. 



Rhus L. Sumach 



Trees or shrubs with alternate, simple trifoliolate or odd-pinnate leaves; 

 small polygamous flowers in panicles; calyx deeply 5-parted; petals 5, spread- 

 ing; stamens 5, inserted below the flattened disk, fruit small, 1-seeded. About 

 120 species in the temperate regions common in southern Africa. Some species 

 are poisonous. The Japanese Rhus vernicifcra and R. succeda-nea are culti- 

 vated in Japan for the lacquer which is taken from incisions made in the trees. 

 Dr. White states that some of the embossed Japanese papers which are used 

 in houses have caused severe inflammation, and according to Dr. H. N. 

 Allen, natives as well as Europeans in the East are often affected with "varnish 

 poisoning" 



Rhus Toxicodendron L Poison Ivy. Three Leaved Ivy 



A climbing or trailing shrub, sometimes erect, with 3 leaflets: plant erect 

 or climbing by means of its aerial rootlets; flowers inconspicuous, polygamous 

 in loose and slender axillary panicles; fruit globular, glabrous, whitish and 

 waxy, frequently remaining on the plant until late spring. 



